Art of Science: Untangling Genes and Environment in Complex Traits
Details
PRESENTATION BEGINS AT 8 PM.
In this science outreach series, scientists present different scientific topics to the general public in a laid-back atmosphere in an art gallery.
Please mark your calendar for the upcoming fall 2025 events:
11/20/25 – Geoengineering
12/11/25 – Nuclear Physics
More information will be given closer to each event.
The October 2025 event:
Why Do Relatives Resemble Each Other? Untangling Genes and Environment in Complex Traits
Presented by Ms. Marida Ianni-Ravn
University of Chicago
Art in the gallery introduced by Fran Lightbound
School of the Art Institute of Chicago
Presentation abstract and presenter bios are below.
PRESENTATION BEGINS AT 8 PM.
Exciting science, art and socializing.
Donation bar.
Vegan snacks.
Events are always free and open to all, so feel free to invite others.
Hope to see you there!
Parlour & Ramp Gallery is at 2130 W. 21st St.
Easily accessible by the pink line (Damen stop) and the Damen Ave. (#50) bus. Some street parking available.
https://parlourandramp.com/
Facebook event page,
https://www.facebook.com/events/817165270818602.
You are invited to join the Art of Science Facebook group,
https://www.facebook.com/groups/308458645920283/.
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Why Do Relatives Resemble Each Other? Untangling Genes and Environment in Complex Traits
Many human traits—from height to disease risk to food preference—are influenced by both, genetic variation and the environments we live in. Understanding both is important: genes can reveal the biology underlying traits and can guide treatments, while environments might shape risks in ways we can intervene on. The challenge in distinguishing genetic and environmental effects is that relatives share not only DNA, but also environments such as household, culture, and socioeconomic background. These shared environments can mimic the effects of genes, making the two hard to separate.
Marida Ianni-Ravn will explore in this presentation how genetic and environmental influences become entangled, how researchers work to distinguish them, and why this matters for understanding human health and disease.
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Marida Ianni-Ravn
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Marida Ianni-Ravn is a fourth year PhD student in Human Genetics at the University of Chicago, where she studies how genes and shared environments shape human traits. She previously earned a master’s degree in Bioinformatics at the University of Copenhagen and an undergraduate degree in Natural Sciences at the University of Cambridge.
Beyond research, her biggest passions are art—especially portraiture—and a street dance style called locking.
Fran Lightbound
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Frances Lightbound is an interdisciplinary artist based in Chicago, working between printmaking, sculpture and installation to address the materiality of built space, and relationships between time, bodies and buildings. She is a lecturer in Printmedia at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally at venues in the US and Europe, with recent solo exhibitions at Rule Gallery (Marfa TX), Bird Show (Chicago), and the John David Mooney Foundation (Chicago). Lightbound was awarded a Luminarts Visual Arts Fellowship in 2017. Originally from Sheffield, England, she received an MFA from School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and a BA (Hons) from Glasgow School of Art, Scotland.